Kurt Schwitters Sold at Auction Prices

Painter, Modelleur, Collage Artist, Sculptor, b. 1887 - d. 1948

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Dec. 02, 2023
Kurt Schwitters, Weg mit Gatter, 1915
Est: €6,000 - €8,000
Monogrammed and dated 'K.S.1915.' in green lower right. Signed and dated 'Kurt Schwitters 1915' verso in pencil on an old frame case fragment. The painting will be included in the supplement to the catalogue raisonné by Kathrin Orchard and Isabel Schulz, Hanover, under no. 122a.
Kunsthaus Lempertz KG
Nov. 29, 2023
Kurt Schwitters: Mz 406
Est: €60,000 - €80,000
SCHWITTERS, KURT 1887 Hannover - 1948 Ambleside Title: Mz 406. Date: 1921. Technique: Paper collage on thin card. Measurement: 17 x 14cm. Mounted in mat (27.8 x 22.5cm). Notation: Signed lower right on mat: K. Schwitters. Beside that dated by a hand other than that of the artist. Lower left inscribed by a hand other than that of the artists: Mz (very faded) 106 Magdeburg. Verso of the mat lower right inscribed by the artist: Mz. 406. netto 1000M. Frame/Pedestal: Framed. Enclosed to the work is an expertise by Dr. Isabel Schulz, Sprengel Museum Hannover, and Dr. Karin Orchard dated 22 September 2023. The work listed under the catalogue raisonné number A10 is no longer listed as questionable in the "Kurt Schwitters Catalogue Raisonné", but is given the new catalogue number 896b. Provenance: - Private collection Germany Literature: - Orchard, Karin/Schulz, Isabel: Kurt Schwitters - Catalogue Raisonné, vol. 1 1905-1922, Ostfildern-Ruit 2000, cat. rais. no. 896b (formerly cat. rais. no. A10). - Kurt Schwitters is considered the most important representative of the avant-garde Dada movement. - The collages ("Merzzeichnungen") are among the artist's most sought-after works on the international art market - This work is offered for the first time on the international auction market "Kaputt war sowieso alles, und es galt aus den Scherben Neues zu bauen. Das aber ist Merz." (Kurt Schwitters quoted after: Lach, Friedhelm (ed.): Kurt Schwitters - Das literarische Werk, vol. 5. Manifeste und kritische Prosa, Cologne 1981, p. 335). Estimated shipping costs for this lot: Arrangement after the auction. Explanations to the Catalogue
Van Ham Kunstauktionen
Nov. 28, 2023
Kurt Schwitters
Est: €150,000 - €200,000
(Hannover 1887 – 1948 Kendal, GB) c 71 falling paper pieces, 1946, titled, signed, dated Kurt Schwitters 1946 c 71, assemblage, oil, cardboard, paper, wood on wood, 33 x 28 cm, framed Provenance: The artist Thence by descent to his son Ernst Schwitters, Lysaker Lord Gallery, London, 1958 (label) Collection Phillipe Dotremont, Brussels New Gallery, New York (label) B. C. Holland Gallery, Chicago (label) Galerie Tarica, Paris (label) Private Collection, Germany Exhibited: London, Lord’s Gallery, Kurt Schwitters, 1958, exhib. no. 28 Milan, Galleria del Naviglio, Kurt Schwitters, 1959, exhib. no. 26 Literature: Karin Orchard, Isabel Schulz, Kurt Schwitters, catalogue raisonné, vol. III, 1937–1948, Ostfildern-Ruit 2006, no. 3262, p. 530 with ill. The Hanoverian Schwitters, born the son of a businessman, is one of the most experimental and innovative artists of Classical Modernism. He was an artistically solitary figure, yet also one of the most productive personalities of the early 20th century. He studied art at the academies in Hanover and Dresden. Schwitter’s oeuvre includes collages and assemblages as well as painting, sculpture and installation art. It is thus rather difficult to reduce his career to one explicit movement. Taking his oeuvre as a whole, his early work is focused on the impressionist and expressionist style, and later on constructivism, Dadaism, and surrealism. He addresses these different styles playfully and self-deprecatingly. The material is a decisive criterion in Schwitters’ art: everyday things, anything used and discarded or left behind, such as old tram tickets, cloakroom tokens, scraps of paper and correspondence, is put into a new context in his artworks. His dense pictorial architectures are often supplemented by words, numbers and overpainting. He transgresses the boundaries of classical painting and counteracts the traditional concept of the work. He transfers discarded objects into a new materiality and thus gives them a different, often absurdly senseless meaning. He summarises his compositions under the term “Merz”, which can be traced back to an accidentally found snippet of the word “Commerz”. The disruption of the post-war period is a focus for Schwitters, and his compositions criticise contemporary materialism in the wasteful society of post-World War I Weimar Germany. He spent his last years in the Lake District in Great Britain, where the present work was created. It exemplifies the further development of his numerous assemblages created since 1918. In its blaze of colour with deep blues, oranges and reds, its emphasis on painterly skills, its diagonal and vertical thrusts, „Fallende Papierstücke“ (Falling Pieces of Paper) is certainly one of the highlights of his oeuvre. Although it is a collage, painting remains a significant focus. The pieces of paper now come together to form the picture itself, instead of being supplementary accessories to a painted surface. The individual scraps of paper are elevated to the medium of painting. They fit together harmoniously to form a „painterly“ complete work. “His [Schwitters‘] art always contained a sense of reciprocity between objects and surfaces. Now illusionistic yet physical surfaces enclose the added objects in an atmospheric painterly net and make them appear embedded in the pictorial space.” J. Elderfield, Kurt Schwitters, London, 1985, p. 213
Dorotheum
Nov. 27, 2023
KURT SCHWITTERS: UNTITLED (D'CILLY)
Est: €60,000 - €100,000
Kurt Schwitters Untitled (D'Cilly) 1941/1942 collage, paper and gauze on paper; framed 32 x 18.7 cm (image), 41.7 x 32 cm (original support carton) Walter and Marga Dux, London (gift of the artist); private property, Merano, to 1995 (inheritance or gift); since then private collection, Italy 2000/2001 Hannover/Düsseldorf/Munich, Aller Anfang ist Merz - von Kurt Schwitters bis heute, Sprengel-Museum Hannover, 20.08.-05.11.2000/Kunstsammlung Westfalen Düsseldorf, 25.11.2000-18.02.2001/Haus der Kunst München, 09.03.-20.05.2001, no. 173 Susanne Meyer-Büser (ed.)/Karin Orchard (ed.), Aller Anfang ist Merz - von Kurt Schwitters bis heute, (exhibition catalogue, Sprengel-Museum Hannover/Kunstsammlung Westfalen Düsseldorf/Haus der Kunst Munich, Hannover/Düsseldorf/Munich 2000/2001), Ostfildern-Ruit 2000, no. 173, ill. p. 166; Karin Orchard/Isabel Schulz, Kurt Schwitters - catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, edited by Sprengel-Museum Hannover, Ostfildern-Ruit 2006, no. 2822, p. 312 (with b/w-ill.) Kurt Schwitters, the "grandmaster of collage" (https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/schwitters-britain, accessed 4.10.2023), was probably one of the most influential artists of the early 20th century. Rejecting conventional genres, he not only developed his oeuvre in the atmosphere of Dadaism, but also borrowed from Surrealism and Constructivism. This gave rise to his own completely unique art form, which he called "Merz", which is often wrongly interpreted as synonymous with the term "Dada" but is in fact an independent stylistic orientation. From 1919 onwards, Kurt Schwitters used the term "Merz", originally taken from a collage in a commercial bank advertisement, for his assemblages of newspaper cuttings, advertisements and waste products. At the same time, a wide range of possible associations with rhyming words such as "Kommerz", "ausmerzen", "Scherz", "Herz" as well as "März" ("March"), which stands for a new beginning, open up. Subsequently, "Merz" writings and "Merz" buildings are created. Already ostracised as "degenerate" early on in his career, Kurt Schwitters emigrated to Norway in 1937 and fled from the German occupiers to England in 1940. After being interned in various camps, he settled in London at the end of 1941. It was here that he created the "Merz" picture "D'Cilly", in which he creates a collage over a photograph of a portrait of Franz Defregger. Clippings from fashion magazines, London bus timetables and a handwritten address slip have likewise been used here, as has part of a picture of a fellow artist. It could well be a detail of a work by his friend Ben Nicholson and shows Kurt Schwitters’ close relationship to Constructivism and Abstraction-Création. Cilly’s eyes have been left out, so that amidst the wildly collaged parts, the girl gazes intensely at us as if through a slit. This motif was not chosen at random: Franz Defregger, a representative of the Munich School, is probably a symbol of the representational, historicising painting that must be surmounted. Kurt Schwitters uses the collaged parts like the brushstrokes of a painting, thus creating a dense composition that "has grown out of laws as strict as those of nature" (Kurt Schwitters quoted on: https://beruhmte-zitate.de/autoren/kurt-schwitters/, accessed on 4.10.2023). "Merz" art negates everything known up to that time, desires "liberation from every fetter" (Kurt Schwitters, see above), and thus prepares fertile ground for the coming generations of artists. (Sophie Cieslar)
Im Kinsky
Nov. 25, 2023
Kurt Schwitters. Merz Werbezentrale, Die gute Reklame ist billig.
Est: €9,000 - €12,000
Zweifarbige Lithographie. Um 1925. 10,5 : 15,5 cm. Lithographierte Werbekarte für das »Ein-Mann-Werbeunternehmen« Kurt Schwitters. – Die ikonische, sehr seltene Karte in ungewöhnlich farbfrischem Kolorit und tadelloser Erhaltung. – »Daß Schwitters in den frühen zwanziger Jahren berufsmäßiger Werbegestalter und Typograph wurde, hatte nicht allein in der Notwendigkeit, Geld zu verdienen, seine Ursache, sondern war im Grunde schon in seiner mit typographischen Elementen operierenden Merz-Kunst vorgezeichnet. Außerdem verfügte er über die sprachschöpferischen Fähigkeiten, deren es bei der Werbung bedarf. Ja, eine starke Neigung zu Reklame, zum ›Verkaufen‹ seiner eigenen Produkte, war ihm nicht nur angeboren, sondern war ebenfalls ein stilistisches Element seiner – namentlich dichterischen – Produktion. […] Einen zweifellos starken Impuls erfuhr Schwitters' typographisches Interesse durch Doesburg, Moholy-Nagy und Lissitzky. […] Schwitters richtete in diesen Jahren ein eigenes Werbebüro ein, das er Merz-Werbe-zentrale nannte. […] So arbeitete Schwitters seit ca. 1923 als freier Werbeberater und Graphiker für eine Reihe hannoverscher und auswärtiger Firmen wie H. Bahlsen's Keksfabrik, Günther Wagner (Pelikan), Norta-Tapeten, Weise Söhne (Pumpen-Fabrik) in Halle, Philipps. Ferner entwarf er Drucksachen wie Briefbögen, Postkarten, Zeitungsanzeigen, Bühnenspielpläne […] für die Stadt Hannover.« (Werner Schmalenbach). Schelle/Haldenwanger/Heine 38 mit ganzseitiger Farbabbildung auf Seite 75. – Schmalenbach, Kurt Schwitters, Köln 1967, S. 56. – Ilk, Global Avantgarde, Germany 81 [Keywords: ; Typography, Letterheads, Bauhaus ]
Christian Hesse Auktionen
Nov. 10, 2023
Architektur - - Schwitters, Kurt
Est: €1,600 - €2,400
Architektur - - Schwitters, Kurt (Gestaltung). Ausstellung Karlsruhe. Dammerstock-Siedlung. Die Gebrauchswohnung. Veranstaltet von der Landeshauptstadt Karlsruhe vom 29. September bis zum 27. Oktober 1929. Oberleitung Professor Dr. W. Gropius. Mit zahlreichen Abbildungen. Karlsruhe, Druck C. F. Müller, 1929. 63 S. 21 x 30 cm. Original-Broschur mit Deckeltitel (leicht fleckig, unteres Kapital mit kleiner Fehlstelle, mittig mit Faltspur). Erste Ausgabe. - Von Kurt Schwitters typographisch gestalteter Katalog. - Kat. Schwitters, Typographie und Werbegestaltung, 113 - Dokumentations-Bibliothek III, 110 - "auf Wunsch von professor dr. w. gropius, berlin, dem künstlerischen oberleiter der dammerstock-siedlung, wurde der Katalog in kleinen buchstaben gesetzt." - Die detaillierten Abbildungen zeigen die Entwürfe der beteiligten Architekten (Walter Gropius, Otto Haesler, Riphahn, Groth u.a.) und Baufirmen aufgeteilt in zwanzig Baugruppen. S. 60-63 mit von Schwitters gestalteten Anzeigen der beteiligten Firmen. - Durchgehend unterschiedlich stockfleckig, sonst gut.
Nosbüsch & Stucke GmbH
Oct. 24, 2023
Kurt Schwitters (1887-1948) Wieder horizontal collage de papiers, tissus et
Est: €40,000 - €60,000
Kurt Schwitters (1887-1948) Wieder horizontal collage de papiers, tissus et photographie sur papier fort monté par l'artiste sur papier fort 24 x 18.9 cm.
Christie's
Oct. 07, 2023
Schwitters, Kurt (1887-1948)
Est: -
Schwitters, Kurt (1887-1948) Oel/Leinwand. Flusslandschaft. Rechts unten mongr. und datiert "K. S. 27". 48 x 70. Rahmen 57 x 80 cm
Kunst-und Auktionshaus Schloss Hagenburg
Oct. 07, 2023
Schwitters, Kurt (1887-1948)
Est: -
Schwitters, Kurt (1887-1948) Mischtechnik Collage. Abstrakte Komposition, auf dem Passepartout Signatur. 14 x 10 cm, unter Glas gerahmt. 36 x 31 cm.
Kunst-und Auktionshaus Schloss Hagenburg
Sep. 12, 2023
Kurt Schwitters, Portrait of a gentleman
Est: £700 - £900
Kurt Schwitters, German 1887-1948 - Portrait of a gentleman; oil on panel, partially signed with initials, 61.5 x 40.5 cm Provenance: Estate of Geoffrey Roome, who has works in the collection of the British Museum; private collection, UK Note: the unidentified sitter is probably the husband of the woman in portrait CR No. 3173b due to their common provenance. This work as been added to the Kurt Schwitters Catalogue raisonné, published by Sprengel Museum Hannover, cat. no.3173a
Roseberys
Sep. 12, 2023
Kurt Schwitters, Portrait of a woman, 1945
Est: £700 - £900
Kurt Schwitters, German 1887-1948 - Portrait of a woman, 1945; oil on panel, signed with initials lower right 'KS 45' 51 x 45 cm Provenance: Estate of Geoffrey Roome, who has works in the collection of the British Museum; private collection, UK Note: the unidentified sitter is probably the wife of the man in portrait CR No. 3173a due to their common provenance. This work as been added to the Kurt Schwitters Catalogue raisonné, published by Sprengel Museum Hannover, cat. no.3173b.
Roseberys
Jun. 16, 2023
Kurt Schwitters: Ohne Titel (dadá ist ewig.)
Est: CHF74,999 - CHF75,000
Kurt Schwitters (Hannover 1887 - 1948 Ambleside) Ohne Titel (dadá ist ewig.) Merzzeichnung - Collage / Merz drawing - Collage 1924 14,4x13,5 cm, Collage; 30,3x23,2 cm, Originalunterlage / 14.4x13.5 cm, collage; 30.3x23.2 cm, original underlay Signatur / Signature Auf der Unterlage vom Künstler in Tinte signiert und datiert "Kurt Schwitters. 1924." Signed and dated in ink by the artist on the backing "Kurt Schwitters. 1924." Werkverzeichnis / Catalogue Raisonné Karin Orchard/Isabel Schulz, Kurt Schwitters, Catalogue raisonné, Band 2, 1923-1936, Ostfildern-Ruit 2003, Nr. 1236 Karin Orchard/Isabel Schulz, Kurt Schwitters, Catalogue raisonné, vol. 2, 1923-1936, Ostfildern-Ruit 2003, no. 1236 Provenienz / Provenance Durch Erbschaft vom Künstler an Ernst Schwitters, Lysaker (1948-1986) Galerie Kornfeld, Bern Privatsammlung Schweiz By inheritance from the artist to Ernst Schwitters, Lysaker (1948-1986) Galerie Kornfeld, Bern Private collection Switzerland Literatur / Literature Shuzo Takiguchi, "Kurt Merz Schwitters", in: Mizue, Heft 670 (Februar), Tokio 1961, reprod. ohne Seite Shuzo Takiguchi, "Kurt Merz Schwitters", in: Mizue, issue 670 (February), Tokyo 1961, reprod. no page Ausstellungen / Exhibitions Düsseldorf 1958, Kunsthalle, Dada - Dokumente einer Bewegung, Kat. Nr. 503 Amsterdam 1958-1959, Stedelijk Museum, Dada, Kat. Nr. 418 Tokio 1960, Minami Gallery, Kurt Schwitters, Kat. Nr. 28 Ulm 1961, Ulmer Museum, Kurt Schwitters, Liste Nr. 56 (ohne Katalog) Düsseldorf 1958, Kunsthalle, Dada - Dokumente einer Bewegung, cat. no. 503 Amsterdam 1958-1959, Stedelijk Museum, Dada, cat. no. 418 Tokyo 1960, Minami Gallery, Kurt Schwitters, cat. no. 28 Ulm 1961, Ulm Museum, Kurt Schwitters, list no. 56 (without catalogue) Zustand / Condition In der linken oberen Ecke der Unterlage ein kleiner Einriss, die rechte untere Ecke leicht gestaucht A small tear in the upper left corner of the backing, the lower right corner slightly creased Erläuterungen / Comments Kurt Schwitters verwendet seit 1918 den Begriff "Merz" (laut Eigenaussage vom Wort "Kommerz" abgeleitet) für seine Collagen und Assemblagen. Der Terminus wird fortan zum Synonym für seine vielseitigen künstlerischen Aktivitäten. 1919 finden erste Gruppenausstellungen mit seinen Merzbildern statt, u. a. in der Galerie "Der Sturm", Berlin. Er veröffentlicht Texte wie "Anna Blume. Dichtungen", die in den Kanon der Literaturwissenschaft eingehen, oder schreibt Essays zu seinem Verständnis von "Merz"-Kunst. Im Januar 1923 erscheint die erste Ausgabe der von ihm herausgegebenen Zeitschrift "Merz", weitere folgen in unregelmässigen Abständen in verschiedenen Formaten bis 1932. Für die vorliegende Collage verwendet er einen Teil einer Lithographie, die in der ersten Merzmappe von 1923 erscheint (vgl. Blatt 4 aus: "MERZ 3. MERZ MAPPE. ERSTE MAPPE DES MERZVERLAGES", Orchard/Schulz 1194.5.) und collagiert diesen mit diversen graphischen und textlichen Elementen. Neben einer abgestempelten Briefmarke, einem Merzmosaik, dem Satz "dadá ist ewig." kommt auch das Wort "NASCI" vor: ein Begriff, der sich auch auf dem Titelblatt der Merzzeitschrift 8/9, die er in Zusammenarbeit mit El Lissitzky 1924 publiziert hat, wiederfindet. Die Merzzeichnung besticht durch die ausgewogene Komposition, in der Mitte platziert er ein Gesichtsprofil in blauer Tusche Kurt Schwitters used the term "Merz" (according to his own statement derived from the word "commerce") for his collages and assemblages from 1918 onwards. From then on, the term became synonymous with his multifaceted artistic activities. In 1919, the first group exhibitions of his Merz pictures took place, among others in the gallery "Der Sturm", Berlin. He publishes texts such as "Anna Blume. Dichtungen" (Anna Flower. Poems), which become part of the canon of literary studies, or writes essays on his understanding of "Merz" art. In January 1923, the first issue of the magazine "Merz", which he edited, appeared, followed by others at irregular intervals in various formats until 1932. For the present collage, he used part of a lithograph that appeared in the first Merz folder of 1923 (cf. sheet 4 from: "MERZ 3. MERZ MAPPE. ERSTE MAPPE DES MERZVERLAGES", Orchard/Schulz 1194.5.) and collages it with various graphic and textual elements. In addition to a stamped postage stamp, a Merz mosaic, the phrase "dadá ist ewig.", the word "NASCI" also appears: a term that also appears on the cover of Merz's magazine 8/9, which he published in collaboration with El Lissitzky in 1924. The Merz drawing captivates with its balanced composition, in the centre he places a facial profile in blue ink MWST / VAT Mehrwertsteuer auf dem Zuschalgspreis plus Aufgeld / VAT on hammer price plus buyer's premium Erwartete Ausrufzeit / Estimated Auction Time of Lot (+/- 30min) 16.06.2023; 17:20 h (MEST / CET) For further information visit our Website (www.kornfeld.ch)
Galerie Kornfeld Auktionen AG
Jun. 07, 2023
Kurt Schwitters, Frau am Ziehbrunnen, 1912
Est: €10,000 - €15,000
Signed and dated 'K.Schwitters.12' in black lower right. Titled 'Ziehbrunnen' verso on the stretcher. With confirmation by Isabel Schulz, Kurt Schwitters Archive, Sprengel Museum Hannover. The work is registered under the provisional catalogue raisonné no. 0035a.
Kunsthaus Lempertz KG
Jun. 04, 2023
Kurt Schwitters - Städtische Bühnen Hannover. Opernhaus.
Est: €500 - €750
Fünf Programmhefte. Hannover 1931–1934. Mit vielen Abbildungen. Fünf zweifarbig lithographierte Originalbroschuren. Alle Umschläge in der markanten Rot-Blau-Gestaltung von Kurt Schwitters, die rückseitigen Bahlsen-Anzeigen entstanden wohl unter Beteiligung von Martel Schwichtenberg, der Werbeleiterin bei Bahlsen. – 1923 hatte sich Schwitters als freier Werbeberater und Gebrauchsgraphiker niedergelassen, 1927 war er Mitbegründer des »ring neuer werbegestalter«. »Um 1930 war die typografische Tätigkeit von Schwitters […] auf ihren Höhepunkt gelangt. Zeichen dafür [… sind auch] die Werbeaufträge für die Städtischen Bühnen Hannover (1929–1933) […] 1933 kam dies alles ins Wanken« (Dietrich Helms, in: »die abstrakten hannover«, 1987, Seite 74ff.). – Spielzeit 1930/31, Hefte 2, 4, 6 und 8 (Heft 2 mit Einleitung von Arnold Zweig). Auch der Innenteil noch in der Typographie von Schwitters auf der Umschlagseite 3 seine Eigenanzeige. – Spielzeit 1933/34, Heft 2. Ein brauner Geist weht durch dieses Heft, inhaltlich und gestalterisch. Die Fraktur ist wieder da – sie sollte allerdings bereits 1941 als »Judenletter« wieder in Ungnade fallen. – Alle mit Schauspielerporträts, Szenenfotos und zahlreichen Anzeigen. I–IV: 24,0 : 17,3 cm. Je 16 Seiten. – V: 22 : 15,8 cm. 20, [6] Seiten. Leichte Knickfalte vorn, hinterer Umschlag fleckig. – Alle etwas angestaubt. Juan March Collection Schwitters Advertising 83 und 84. – Schelle/Haldenwanger/Heine 266 [Keywords: ; ]
Christian Hesse Auktionen
May. 18, 2023
Kurt Schwitters (German, 1884-1948) Untitled (uviolett), c. 1926-28
Est: $40,000 - $60,000
Kurt Schwitters (German, 1884-1948) Untitled (uviolett), c. 1926-28 paper collage on card mounted on paper signed Kurt Schwitters (lower right) 7 1/4 x 5 1/2 inches. Property From the Estate of Lucia Woods Lindley Provenance: Hans Brockstedt, Hanover, Germany, 1956 Sidney Janis Gallery, New York, 1956 (label verso, erroneously dated to 1936) Ralph Pappenheimer, Cincinnati, Ohio Private Collection, Toronto, Canada Gemini Gallery, Palm Beach, Florida Sold: Sotheby's, New York, November 19, 1986, Lot 113 (erroneously dated to 1936) Private Collection, New York, 1986 - 1997 Clements Touissant, Cologne, Germany, 1997 - 1999 With Art Focus, Zurich, 1999 Galerie Berinson, Berlin, 2000 Ubu Gallery, New York, 2003 Purchased from the above by the present owner, 2003 Exhibited: New York, Sidney Janis Gallery, 57 Collages: Kurt Schwitters, October 22 - November 17, 1956, no. 37 New York, Ubu Gallery, Kurt Schwitters (1887-1948): Collages, Paintings, Drawings, Objects, Ephemera, April 1 - May 23, 2003, p. 1, no. 1, illus. Literature: Inka Schube, Kurt Schwitters: Catalogue Raisonne, Vol. 2, 1923 - 1936, Berlin, 2003, p. 219, no. 1470, illus. Lot note: Created from found scraps, Untitled (uviolett), c. 1926-28, is an excellent example of Kurt Schwitters's MERZ-pictures, a series of collages that have become the most prominent works in his oeuvre. Schwitters referred to these collages as their own species and obsessed over the intricacies of their creation. The paper scraps - labels, advertisements, newspaper clippings, any manner of detritus - were placed in a way both complex and seemingly random, discarding any pretense of illusionistic hierarchy in the process. Untitled (uviolett) references a snippet of a word found in the bottom right corner of the work, partially covered by another scrap of paper in careful layers. A brightly patterned scrap contrasts with the others, creating shadows and depth while toying with perspective. The viewers' eyes are drawn to the text, trying to recognize what each piece was before it was collaged, and in this Schwitters succeeds: the ordinary has become art. Upon his first discovery of collage, influenced by contemporaries Raoul Hausmann, Hannah Hoch, and Jean Arp, formally trained Schwitters was overwhelmed with his newfound material freedom and struggled to find a term for his new imagery. The term Merz originated as organically as the found materials from which they were made: a shred of an advertisement clipping Schwitters used in one of his earliest creations was printed with the word Kommerz (commerce), and from there Merz emerged. Merz would eventually envelop Schwitters' practice as he navigated the evolution of his Dadaist avant-garde assemblages. The birth of Merz was inextricably linked to the harrowing conditions in Germany following World War I, as the country grappled with political, moral, and economic ruin. The materials he repurposed in his work were a practical but quiet commentary on commercial culture and the societal downfall from which he felt there was no escape. "Merz," said Schwitters, "stands for freedom from all fetters, for the sake of artistic creation." Freedom in any sense became harder to maintain as the Second World War loomed. Though his career had progressed -- leading to opportunities such as his inclusion in two seminal exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art -- his aesthetic wasn't appreciated by the Nazis, who deemed him a "degenerate." Schwitters fled to Norway, then was forced to the United Kingdom and a series of internment camps. He would continue compulsively making work for the rest of his life, with his predilection for found materials allowing him to create even in the most distressing circumstances. He was eventually released in 1941 and moved to London. Though a stroke in 1944 left him largely bedridden, his momentum never diminished, rather, he lived with a fervor and directed a new collaged construction project with financial support from the Museum of Modern Art, which was never completed. Schwitters died in 1948, the day after receiving a long-sought-after American visa. A fastidious record keeper, his archives were unfortunately destroyed in an Allied bombing raid. This, combined with the limited commercial success received during his lifetime, further delayed the market's appreciation for his contributions to Modernism and beyond. Posthumously referred to as the grandfather of both Pop art and Fluxus, Schwitters has been cited as an influence by artists including Ed Ruscha, Robert Rauschenberg, and Arman. Though the artist will never see it himself, the art world has also fallen under the spell of Merz.
Hindman
May. 13, 2023
Kurt Schwitters
Est: €850 - €1,700
(1887 Hannover - 1948 Kendal/Cumbria/England) "Anna Blume. Dichtungen". Originaltitel Orig.-Broschur mit Umschlagzeichnung in zwei Farben von Kurt Schwitters, dat. 1919. 37 S. zuzüglich 3 S. Werbeanhang. Erstausgabe (1.-5. Tausend) des berühmten Dada-Heftes mit dem berühmten "Merz"-Gedicht "An Anna Blume", erschienen als Bd. 39/40 von "Die Silbergäule. Eine radikale Bücherreihe", Paul Steegemann Verlag, Hannover, 1919. Insgesamt gut erhaltenes Exemplar, unterhalb ger. wasserrandig, Umschlagrücks. mit ger. Läsur, Umschlag und Seiten wie üblich papier- und altersbedingt leicht gebräunt. 21,8 cm x 14,7 cm. Provenienz: Sammlung Meuer, Hannover First edition of the artist's book with illustrated cover and poems, published in 1919 by Paul Steegemann Verlag, Hannover. Overall in a good condition consistent to age and use.
Kunstauktionshaus Schloss Ahlden
May. 11, 2023
DADA ─ Schwitters, Kurt. Kurt
Est: - €4,500
DADA ─ Schwitters, Kurt. Kurt Schwitters rezitiert aus "Ursonate". Original-Photographie auf Postkarte. Vintage. Silbergelatine. Auf der Rückseite mit handschriftlichem Vermerk "zurück an Schwitters". Um 1920. Blattmaße: 13,9 x 8,7 cm. Unter Passepartout gesteckt. Das äußerst seltene Photo zeigt den Dada-Poeten und Graphiker Kurt Schwitters (1887-1948) während eines Vortrags in der "Galerie der Sturm" Berlin. Der Inhaber Herwarth Walden hatte Schwitters am 5. und 11. Mai 1920 zu zwei Vorträgen über seine eigenen poetischen Dada-Werke eingeladen. Wahrscheinlich wurde das Photo bei dieser Gelegenheit aufgenommen. - Während seines Aufenthaltes in Berlin besuchte er auch die legendäre "Erste Internationale Dada-Messe" in der Kunsthandlung Dr. Otto Burchard, wo er alle Schlüsselfiguren der Berliner Dada-Bewegung traf. - Ein seltenes Dokument zum "DADA in Berlin". - Ränder leicht ausgesilbert, verso mit Spuren einer alten Montierung, sonst sehr gut erhalten.
Nosbüsch & Stucke GmbH
May. 07, 2023
Kurt Schwitters
Est: €7,500 - €15,000
(1887 Hannover - 1948 Kendal/Cumbria/England) Haus der Familie Wilke in Ricklingen Mit schnellem, breitem, weich pastosem Pinselstrich ausgeführtes, noch ganz impressionistisches Frühwerk aus der Zeit um 1913. Schwitters studierte 1909 - 1914 an der Akademie der Künste in Dresden bei Carl Bantzer, Gottfried Kuehl und Emanuel Hegenbarth. Aus der Zeit vor seiner Hinwendung zum Dadaismus, Expressionismus, Futurismus und Kubismus in den Jahren ab 1917/18 ist nur eine relativ kleine Anzahl von Landschaften und Stillleben bekannt. 1918 lernte er Herwarth Walden kennen und hatte seine erste Ausstellung in dessen Galerie "Der Sturm" in Berlin. Schwitters schloss sich den Dadaisten an, wurde in Hannover Initiator einer Dada-Gruppe und arbeitete mit Hans Arp, Raoul Hausmann, Hannah Höch und Tristan Tzara zusammen. 1919 erfand Schwitters die revolutionäre "Merz"-Kunst und den zugehörigen Begriff "Merz", zunächst für seine Technik, aus Zeitungsausschnitten, Reklame und Fundstücken Collagen zu erstellen. Als Gegenprojekt zu einem eher destruktiven Dadaismus sollten diese Bilder und Skulpturen als Gesamtkunstwerk Leben und Kunst wieder vereinen. 1919 zeigte Schwitters sein erstes "MERZ-Bild" in der "Sturm"-Galerie, 1923 eröffnete er seine eigene "MERZ"-Schriftenreihe mit einer Dada-Nummer, dem "Holland Dada". Ab circa 1923 arbeitete Schwitters auch an seinem berühmten "Merzbau" (eine Collage-Raum-Skulptur) in seiner Wohnung im Haus der Eltern in Hannover (1943 bei einem Bombenangriff zerstört). Von den Nationalsozialisten als "entartet" verfemt, emigrierte Schwitters 1937 nach Norwegen und floh 1940 nach England. Öl/Lwd.; R. u. monogr.; 65 cm x 85 cm. Rahmen. Wvz. Orchard/Schulz 77. Provenienz: Anna Wilke, Ohlendorf (Nachlass); Leni Reuter, Ohlendorf (Nachlass); seitdem in Familienbesitz, Niedersachsen. Oil on canvas. Monogrammed. Mentioned in the catalogue raisonnée.
Kunstauktionshaus Schloss Ahlden
Apr. 29, 2023
Kurt Schwitters (Hannover 1887 - 1948 Kendal in England) - o.T. (Anlegestelle auf Hjertoya 1).
Est: -
Kurt Schwitters (Hannover 1887 - 1948 Kendal in England) o.T. (Anlegestelle auf Hjertoya 1). Öl auf Karton auf Holz. Um 1932. 37 x 46 cm. Gerahmt. Orchard/Schulz 1847 - Die obere Bildhälfte mit leichtem Craquelé. Vereinzelte Retuschen und winzige Farbverluste.
Dr. Irene Lehr Kunstauktionen GmbH
Apr. 20, 2023
Schwitters, Kurt: Memoiren Anna Blumes
Est: €800 - €1,200
Schwitters, Kurt. Memoiren Anna Blumes in Bleie. Eine leichtfaßliche Methode zur Erlernung des Wahnsinns für Jedermann. Von Kurt Merz Schwitters. 25 S., 1 Bl. Mit 2 Collagen und Buchschmuck vom Autor-Künstler. 18,5 x 11,5 cm. OBroschur mit illustr. OUmschlag (Vorderumschlag an der Unterkante mit Fehlstellen; einige Randeinrisse, Rückumschlag mit kl. Wasserfleck). Freiburg, W. Heinrich, 1922. -- Die hohe Reihe, Schnitter-Bücher. Schmalenbach-Bolliger I 5. W.-G. 4. Raabe, Handb. 273, 4. – Erste Ausgabe. Sehr seltene kleine Sammlung von Merz-Dichtungen, enthält auch zwei Kompositionen. – Kleines Exlibris; etwas gebräunt; insgesamt sehr gutes Exemplar.
Galerie Bassenge
Apr. 18, 2023
KURT SCHWITTERS (1887-1948) Die Kathedrale from Die Silbergäule, vol. 41/42
Est: $7,000 - $10,000
KURT SCHWITTERS (1887-1948) Die Kathedrale from Die Silbergäule, vol. 41/42 Overall: 8 7/8 x 5 5/8 in. (225 x 145 mm.)
Christie's
Mar. 23, 2023
KURT SCHWITTERS Auswuchten von Rädern.
Est: $4,000 - $6,000
KURT SCHWITTERS Auswuchten von Rädern. Lithograph on tan wove paper, 1919. 115x90 mm; 4 3/4x3 3/4 inches, full margins. Signed, dated and inscribed "I. 22" in pencil, lower margin. A very good impression of this exceedingly scarce lithograph. We have not found another impression at auction in the past 30 years. We have located only one other impression of this lithograph in a public collection, at the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa. Born in Hanover, Schwitters (1887-1948) studied at the Dresden Academy then returned to his hometown where he experimented with a variety of modern styles before finding his own. Like many artists of the late 1910s, he was trying to make sense of the devastating aftermath of World War I. As he stated, "The Great War is over, in a certain manner the world is in ruins, and so I pick up its pieces, I build a new reality." His new reality came in the form of collages or what he called "Merz" works—constructions made from found objects. In 1919, he did his first Merz work, and while he became associated with many movements throughout his career, he applied this invented term to his creative activities throughout his life, including paintings, sculptures, poetry and sound. He even turned his homes into experimental constructions he called Merzbau. He became acquainted with Dada in the late 1910s when he was involved with Der Sturm and met Raoul Hausmann, Hannah Höch, Jean Arp and other leading figures of the anti-art movement. While some Dadaists viewed Schwitters's work as too concerned with form, he nevertheless, kept close ties to the Dadaists in Zurich and Berlin and employed their ideas frequently.
Swann Auction Galleries
Mar. 23, 2023
KURT SCHWITTERS Eindorf.
Est: $8,000 - $12,000
KURT SCHWITTERS Eindorf. Black chalk on cream wove paper, 1918. 205x130 mm; 8x5 1/8 inches. Initialed in pencil, lower left recto. Provenance: The artist; thence by descent to the artist's son, Ernst Schwitters, Lysaker; Marlborough Fine Art, London and Rome, 1965; private collection, Rome; Mr. and Mrs. Morton Rome, Baltimore, Maryland; thence by descent to the current owner, private collection, Baltimore, Maryland. Exhibited: "Kurt Schwitters", Kestner-Gesellschaft, Hanover, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Musée des Beaux-Art, Liège, 1956, number 11; "Kurt Schwitters 1887-1948", Minami Gallery, Tokyo, December 1960, number 2; "Kurt Schwitters", Ulmer Museum, Ulm March-April 1961; "Kurt Schwitters 1887-1948", Marlborough Fine Art, London (with the label), Wallraf-Richartz-Museum and Kölnischer Kunstverein, Cologne; Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, Rotterdam; Marlborough Galleria d'Arte, Rome, 1964, number 14; "Kurt Schwitters", University of Los Angeles, Los Angeles; Marlborough Gerson Gallery (with the label), New York; Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, 1965, number 9; "Baltimore's Print and Drawing Society 1968-1988", The Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, October 21-December 4, 1988, with the label. Published: Werner Schmalenbach, Kurt Schwitters, 1967, page 81 (illustrated); Yoshiaki Inui, Kurt Schwitters and Illusionism of Scraps, Bijutsu Tchno, volume 22, issue 325 (March), 1970, page 169 (illustrated); Yukuke Nakahara, From 'The Lifeless View of Scrappings, Bijutsu Techo, volume 31, issue 452, August, 1979, page 129 (illustrated); Kim Behm, Die frühen Nachkriegszeichnungen von Kurt Schwitters (1918-1923), unpublished PhD, University of Marburg, 1997, figure 12; Edited by Karin Orchard and Isabel Schulz, Kurt Schwitters, Catalogue raisonné, Band I, 1905 -1922, 2000, page 144, number Z35 (illustrated). Born in Hanover, Schwitters (1887-1948) studied at the Dresden Academy then returned to his hometown where he experimented with a variety of modern styles before finding his own. Like many artists of the late 1910s, he was trying to make sense of the devastating aftermath of World War I. As he stated, "The Great War is over, in a certain manner the world is in ruins, and so I pick up its pieces, I build a new reality." His new reality came in the form of collages or what he called "Merz" works—constructions made from found objects. In 1919, he did his first Merz work, and while he became associated with many movements throughout his career, he applied this invented term to his creative activities throughout his life, including paintings, sculptures, poetry and sound. He even turned his homes into experimental constructions he called Merzbau. He became acquainted with Dada in the late 1910s when he was involved with Der Sturm and met Raoul Hausmann, Hannah Höch, Jean Arp and other leading figures of the "anti-art" movement. While some Dadaists viewed Schwitters's work as too concerned with form, he nevertheless, kept close ties to the Dadaists in Zurich and Berlin and employed their ideas frequently.
Swann Auction Galleries
Mar. 03, 2023
KURT SCHWITTERS (1887-1948) Ohne Titel (Bild mit schiefer Ebene) oil on pan
Est: £18,000 - £25,000
KURT SCHWITTERS (1887-1948) Ohne Titel (Bild mit schiefer Ebene) oil on panel on board 10 1/2 x 8 5/8 in. (26.8 x 21.9 cm.)
Christie's